The WavePOD prototype generator has produced its first electricity in laboratory tests.

The tenth-scale Wave Power Offtake Device (WavePOD) offshore hydraulic generator, developed by Edinburgh-based Aquamarine Power and Bosch Rexroth, was officially switched on to launch a test programme being conducted at the Institute for Fluid Power Drives and Controls (IFAS) at RWTH Aachen University, Germany.

The prototype is part of a collaborative development effort which includes some of Europe’s leading wave energy developers, utilities and academic institutions.

They hope to develop an industry-wide power take off device which can generate electricity reliably and cost-effectively at sea.

Aquamarine Power chief executive John Malcom, said: “We have already learned a tremendous amount through the design, build and commissioning of this WavePOD prototype

“We are now generating electrical power, and the drive train is using real-life hydrodynamic data from Oyster 800 to ensure the power take off is experiencing exactly the same loads it would encounter at sea.

“We aim to finish lab testing by March next year and plan to install a further prototype in real sea conditions on our Oyster 800 machine in Orkney in 2016.”

The WavePOD prototype development and testing programme receives funding support from the Scottish Government’s Marine Renewables Commercialisation Fund (MRCF), managed by the Carbon Trust.